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History · Columbus

Columbus dates to 1804, and 1 of its places is on the National Register

Most of Columbus was built recently: 9% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1991. Its Register listing is the Columbus-Belmont Civil War State Park. Below: 21 old photos and papers, maps from 1886 on, and the census since 1830.

1804founded
1on the National Register
9%homes built before 1940
21old photos & papers
2famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Columbus’ archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Columbus began

When was Columbus founded?

1804

Columbus dates its founding to 1804 (Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history agree). The census first counted it in 1830.

First census: 196 in 18302020 census: 140222 years
Founding year: Wikidata; Wikipedia’s history section gives the same year. First post office: 1823.The full story ↓

What stands out about Columbus’ past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A town in old photos21 old photos, postcards and papers.Mapped building by building6 fire insurance maps, 1886 to 1927, drew every building in Columbus.Boom and bustPeaked at 1,574 in 1870; 140 people lived here in 2020.Deep rootsEstablished in 1804: 222 years of Columbus.
★ What stands out · By decade

Columbus, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1860s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1860s21 items
Map of the Rebel fortifications at Columbus, Ky1862Map of the Rebel fortifications at Columbus, KyMapBayoneted rifles on racks at arsenal of 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry, Columbus, Kentucky) - From Carbutt's Garden …1864Bayoneted rifles on racks at arsenal of 134th Illinoi…Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry drilling at1864Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry d…Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry drilling at1864Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry d…Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry marching at1864Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry m…Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry playing cards at1864Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry p…Kentucky. Picket Reserve, 134th Ill Vol. Inf. Columbus, Ky1864Kentucky. Picket Reserve, 134th Ill Vol. Inf. Columbu…Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry at Columbus, Kentucky1864Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry a…Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry at Columbus, Kentucky1864Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry a…Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry at Columbus, Kentucky1864Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry a…Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry boxing at Columbus, Kentucky1864Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry b…Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry resting at Columbus, Kentucky1864Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry r…Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry resting at Columbus, Kentucky1864Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry r…Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry resting at Columbus, Kentucky1864Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry r…Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry marching at Columbus, Kentucky1864Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry m…Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry drilling at Columbus, Kentucky1864Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry d…Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry performing drills at Columbus, Kentucky1864Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry p…Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry performing drills at Columbus, Kentucky1864Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry p…Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry lined up at Columbus, Kentucky1864Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry l…Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry at Columbus, Kentucky with flags1864Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry a…Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry playing cards at Columbus, Kentucky1864Soldiers from the 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry p…
Every building

Columbus, building by building, 1886–1927

Fire insurance maps drew every building, what it was made of and what it was used for, so insurers could price the risk of fire. Pick a year, then a sheet.

Columbus fire insurance map, 1886, sheet 11886Sheet 1 of 1
Edition
Sheets
BrickWoodStone

Sanborn Map Company, via the Library of Congress. Editions published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

People over time

Columbus, census by census

02004006008001,0001,2001,4001,6001850190019502000Peak: 1,574

Peaked at 1,574 in 1870; 140 people lived here in 2020.

18 censuses, 1830–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Columbus’ Wikipedia page.

The story

How Columbus came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Columbus.

Read it all →

Columbus is the oldest town in Kentucky's Jackson Purchase. It was first settled on the Mississippi floodplain in 1804 and known as "Iron Banks" after the site's French name les rivages de fer. The long-held local rumor that President Thomas Jefferson planned to remove the American capital to the site has absolutely no basis in fact.

The name of the town was changed to Columbus in 1820 (in honor of the Italian explorer), the year the town received its first post office and was formally established by the state assembly. It was the original Hickman County seat before the transfer of the court to the more central location of Clinton. It was formally incorporated in 1860.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Columbus, 1804 to 1951

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1804
    FoundingColumbus is established
  3. 1823Post officeThe Columbus post office opens
  4. 1830Born hereEdmund Haynes Taylor is born here
  5. 1862In the archiveMap of the Rebel fortifications at Columbus, Ky
  6. 1870CensusPopulation peaks at 1,574
  7. 1873Born hereNorman Edsall is born here
  8. 20th century
  9. 1934BuiltColumbus-Belmont Civil War State Park is built
  10. 1951On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
On the map

Columbus on the map, 1951 to 1982

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Columbus. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Columbus on the 1951 USGS mapColumbus on the 1970 USGS mapColumbus on the 1982 USGS map1951Arlington sheet · 1:24,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Columbus.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Bayoneted rifles on racks at arsenal of 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry, Columbus, Kentucky) - From Carbutt's Garden …
Retake this viewBayoneted rifles on racks at arsenal of 134th Illinois Volunteer Infantry, Columbus, Kentucky) - From Carbutt's Garden …, 1864

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Columbus’ page.

Retake this view · +15
On the National Register

1 historic place in Columbus

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

place listed
1
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
1
each building in a district counts
first listed
1973
Columbus-Belmont Civil War State Park
Columbus-Belmont Civil War State Park, built 1934
Sites
Columbus-Belmont Civil War State ParkBuilt 1934

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

Famous people

2 famous people were born in Columbus

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Norman EdsallSpanish-American War sailor · b. 1873
Edmund Haynes TaylorBorn 12 Feb 1830; died 19 Jan 1923 · b. 1830
Help out

Finish Columbus’s story

Most archives stop around 1920. The photos from after that are in family albums, not libraries.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewBayoneted rifles on racks at arsenal of…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10

Questions about Columbus’ history

What year was Columbus founded?

In 1804, according to Wikidata and Wikipedia’s history of the town. Columbus’ post office opened in 1823, and the census of 1830 counted 196 people here.

What is on the National Register in Columbus?

One place: the Columbus-Belmont Civil War State Park (listed 1973).

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (6), the Library of Congress (15), the National Register of Historic Places (1), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and Sanborn fire insurance maps (Library of Congress). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.